Muslim minority status in Jammu and Kashmir: SC to hear plea today

New Delhi [India]: The Supreme Court on Tuesday will hear a plea filed by Ankur Sharma, questioning the minority status of the Jammu and Kashmir’s Muslims.

Earlier, the apex court asked the Centre and State Government to sit together and deal with the issue jointly.

In February, the court had imposed a cost of Rs 30,000 on the Centre for not filing its reply to a PIL alleging that minority benefits are being enjoyed by majority Muslims in the state.

Jammu-based lawyer Ankur Sharma, in his plea, has alleged that benefits accruing to minorities were being taken away by Muslims who were in a majority in Jammu and Kashmir.

The plea also alleged that rights of religious and linguistic ‘minorities’ in the state were being “siphoned off illegally and arbitrarily” due to the extension of benefits to “unqualified sections” of the population.

He has also sought directions for the constitution of a minority commission in Jammu and Kashmir and extension of the National Minorities Commission Act to the state. (ANI)